Insider’s Trick
One of the key benefits of The Math Worksheet Site’s worksheets is that they’re freshly generated every time. One type of worksheet, Number Recognition, chooses the artwork from a pool of possibilities every time you click “Create It.”
However, our daughter, Joy, then 3 years old, didn’t want just any piece of art. If she wanted puppies, she definitely wanted puppies. Sometimes she wanted apples. So Scott would click “Create It” a dozen or so times until our daughter finally got the one she wanted.
Repeatedly clicking “Create It” got tiresome! So he made a “back door” of sorts to specify the illustration he wanted.
For our subscribers who work with young children with definite preferences, I would like to share the “back door” with you.
Log in to The Math Worksheet Site and go to Number Recognition. Choose your selections and click “Create It.” If you did not happen to get the illustration you wanted, put your cursor at the end of that long URL and type a semicolon, the letter p, and an equal sign, thus:
;p=
then the name of the illustration, and hit the “Enter” key. It will give you a new worksheet that includes the artwork you specified.
For example, if you want apples, type:
;p=apple
then click “Enter” and you will be given a worksheet with as many apples as the number you selected.
Here are the options:
| apple | balloon | bee |
| bird | cat | crab |
| dinosaur | dolphin | feather |
| fish | frog | grasshopper |
| horse | kite | leaf |
| owl | puppy | seahorse |
| tortoise | worm |
(If you wonder why you haven’t seen the worm before, he’s new. He was added tonight. Isn’t he cute?)
(Later update: The tortoise was drawn by my daughter, Anna, and added on July 31 of 2006. The tortoise’s story is entitled “New Tortoise Artwork.”)
I hope this insider’s trick makes life a little easier for you while working with the opinionated children in your life. 
–Denise
March 19th, 2006 at 4:09 pm
Thank you so much for your worksheets. Our family has been using them on and off for several years. They will especially help us this week as we are overseas and the kids have finished their math books. Thank you so much!
March 21st, 2006 at 9:12 am
Hi–I just subscribed and am getting the hang of this neat site! Is there an area to generate algebra problems–to solve for the value of x or x and y? To practice the ever-dreaded FOIL?
Thank you, too, for making worksheets with SPACE for kids to work out the problem! The option on division to include grid lines is very helpful!
March 23rd, 2006 at 5:28 pm
Thanks for the “insider trick” it will be helpful. I am planning on using your site for our K year coming up in the fall. Are there any number writing practice sheets in the works for Pre-K and Kindergarteners?
April 1st, 2006 at 1:06 pm
Hi Sharity,
We do now, thanks to your request! Look in the Early Education category. You can choose between 3 different handwriting styles, 2 sizes, dotted vs. grayed numerals to trace, and shapes vs. pictures, in addition to choosing which numeral will be traced. I hope this helps!
–Denise
June 14th, 2006 at 12:14 am
Hi Karen,
We recently posted a worksheet to address FOIL, thanks to your request. It’s under a new category called Algebra and the worksheet is entitled Multiplying Polynomials. On the selection page you can specify the number of terms and the method of working the problem. It’s a lot more robust for multiplying polynomials than just the specialized FOIL situation.
Regarding solving for x, we do have several worksheets for very basic practice. Addition: Missing Addend, Subtraction: Missing Number, Multiplication: Missing Factor, and Division: Missing Number all give the option of solving for x instead of just filling a blank.
Thanks very much for your kind words about SPACE and about grid lines for Long Division.
Thanks for writing, Karen!
–Denise